CMS/LMS

A Turning Point for Prison Education — from chronicle.com by Taylor Swaak
With reinstatement of Pell Grants imminent, the programs weigh technology’s long-term role.

Excerpts:

Incarcerated people who participate in postsecondary-education programs are 48 percent less likely to return to prison, according to a 2018 study from the RAND Corporation.
…
Three colleges that The Chronicle spoke with are in varying stages of adding technology to their prison-ed programs.

Addendum on 5/11/22:

Prisoners receive college degrees at graduation ceremony inside a Michigan prison — from mlive.com by Bradley Massman

It was a proud, and somewhat routine commencement ceremony for Calvin University on Monday, May 9, though held in the confines of a state prison.

Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary joined the Michigan Department of Corrections Monday to host the graduation ceremony for Calvin Prison Initiative (CPI) students at the state’s Richard A. Handlon Correctional Facility in Ionia.

Addendums on 5/16/22:

More than new 70 colleges and universities chosen to help the incarcerated get credentials — from universitybusiness.com by Chris Burt
The Department of Education is expanding Second Chance Pell Experiment for prospective students in prison.
“Facing Life” by Brandon Tauszik & Pendarvis Harshaw — from booooooom.com

We should put “How best to study/learn” in all global/course navigation bars [Christian]

On 05/09/2022, in 24x7x365 access, assistive technologies, Canvas - and other Instructure-related items, CMS/LMS, community colleges, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education, education reform, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, interface design, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning spaces, learning theories, love of learning, Michigan, microlearning, online learning, online media, parents/guardians, pedagogy, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, research, skills, strategy, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, tools, training / L&D, United States, universities, user interface design, vision/possibilities, visualizing information, vocational / trades, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
For the last few years, I’ve been thinking that we need to make learning science-related information more accessible to students, teachers, professors, trainers, and employees — no matter what level they are at.

One idea on how to do this — besides putting posters up in the hallways, libraries, classrooms, conference rooms, cafeterias, etc. — is that we could put a How best to study/learn link in all of the global navigation bars and/or course navigation bars out there in organizations’ course management systems and learning management systems. Learners of all ages could have 24 x 7 x 365, easy, instant access as to how to be more productive as they study and learn about new things.

For example, they could select that link in their CMS/LMS to access information on:

Retrieval practice
Spacing
Interleaving
Metacognition
Elaboration
The Growth Mindset
Accessibility-related tools / assistive technologies
Links to further resources re: learning science and learning theories

What do you think? If we started this in K12, kept it up in higher ed and vocational programs, and took the idea into the corporate world, valuable information could be relayed and absorbed. This is the kind of information that is highly beneficial these days — as all of us need to be lifelong learners now.

How to make competency-based education possible through an intelligent learning platform [Solea]

On 04/25/2022, in CMS/LMS, competency-based learning/education, higher education, intelligent systems, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, online learning, platforms, tools, by Daniel Christian

How to make competency-based education possible through an intelligent learning platform — from blog.neolms.com by Ioana Solea

Excerpt:

Competency-based education plays an essential role in this endeavor. As its name suggests, this type of learning focuses on individual competency. It promotes a learner-centric approach in which students get from level A to level B after acquiring and demonstrating mastery of certain skills.

Competency-based learning is easier to implement when you have the right tools. An intelligent learning platform (ILP) is the ideal option. This technology already incorporates all the features you need to implement a competency-based learning model.

Learn how an ILP enables competency-based education.

What Educators Need to Know About Assistive Tech Tools: Q&A with Texthelp CEO — from thejournal.com by Kristal Kuykendall and Texthelp CEO Martin McKay

Excerpts (emphasis DSC):

THE Journal: What are some examples of the types of assistive technology tools now available for K–12 schools?
McKay: There are a broad range of disabilities, and accordingly, a broad range of learning and access difficulties that assistive technology can help with. Just considering students with dyslexia — since that is the largest group among students who can benefit from assistive tech tools — the main problems they have are around reading comprehension and writing. Assistive technology can provide text-to-speech, talking dictionaries, picture dictionaries, and text simplification tools to help with comprehension.
…
It’s important that these tools need to work everywhere — not just in their word processor. Assistive technology must work in their learning management systems, and must work in their online assessment environment, so that the student can use the assistive tech tools not only in class, but at home as they work on their homework, and perhaps most importantly on test day when they are using a secure assessment environment.

Instructure’s Acquisition of Concentric Sky Bringing Some Changes to Canvas LMS Users [Kelly]

On 04/19/2022, in Canvas - and other Instructure-related items, CMS/LMS, colleges, community colleges, competency-based learning/education, credentialing, experimentation, higher education, skills, United States, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Instructure’s Acquisition of Concentric Sky Bringing Some Changes to Canvas LMS Users — from thejournal.com by Rhea Kelly
Badgr Digital Micro-Credentialing Platform to be Rebranded as Canvas Badges, Optional ‘Pro’ Upgrades Coming

Excerpts:

Instructure said today its acquisition of Concentric Sky, maker of the Badgr digital credentialing platform, is complete, and the basic Badgr functions will be integrated into Canvas and rebranded as Canvas Badges.
…
Canvas Credentials will enable institutions to “seamlessly award badges that verify and track academic achievements, including competency-based education,” the company explained in a news announcement. With the stackable, shareable credentials, students will be able to track their personalized learning journeys and carry proof of their competencies and skills development.

Subject: Race on Campus: Pronouncing Students’ Names Correctly Is Important. Here’s How. — from chronicle.com by Fernanda Zamudio-Suarez

Excerpt:

When the pandemic moved classes online, Kohli said, platforms like Zoom helped the name-pronunciation process. On Zoom, users can change the way their name is displayed and include a phonetic spelling, making it simpler for everyone to get names right.

If the class is in person, Kohli says modeling behavior after the Zoom interface and asking students how their names are pronounced and how they’d like to be addressed.

For in-person classes, look at your roster ahead of time, Baker-Brown said. If you see a name you don’t recognize, break up the syllables and sound it out.

Then, practice. Repeat it until you get it right, and saying the name becomes second nature.

From DSC:
One other idea that I’m sure is out there, but it needs to be more commonly implemented:

Each learner should be able to record their name in the CMS/LMS for others to hear how their name is pronounced

#Canvas #Moodle #Blackboard #D2L #edtech #corporatetraining #L&D #vocationalprograms #K12 #HigherEducation

All of the topics covered in The Future Trends Forum [Alexander]

On 04/11/2022, in accessibility / UDL, accreditation, adjunct faculty, Alternatives, blended learning, business side of he, change, changing business models, CMS/LMS, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, credentialing, curriculum, data related items, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, hybrid learning, Hyflex learning, ideas, innovation, IT in HE, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, learning spaces, learning theories, new business models, new media literacies, online learning, open courseware and systems, research, science, STEAM-related, teaching & learning, tools, United States, universities, videoconferencing, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, Web3, XR - extended reality, by Daniel Christian

The Future Trends Forum Topics page — from forum.futureofeducation.us by Bryan Alexander

Excerpt:

The Future Trends Forum has explored higher education in depth and breadth. Over six years of regular live conversations we have addressed many aspects of academia.

On this page you’ll find a list of our topics. Consider it a kind of table of contents, or, better yet, an index to the Forum’s themes.

Also see:

300 videos: the Future Trends Forum passes another milestone — from bryanalexander.org by Bryan Alexander

Since we launched in early February, 2016, the Forum has successfully published three hundred videos to YouTube. Week after week, month by month, over more than six years we’ve held great conversations, then shared them with the world, free of charge.

Reflections on “Do We Really Want Academic Permanent Records to Live Forever on Blockchain?” [Bohnke]

On 03/19/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adult learning, Alternatives, analytics, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Blockchain, business, career development, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, CMS/LMS, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, competency-based learning/education, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, credentialing, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education, elearning, formal learning, future, future of higher education, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, informal learning, innovation, instructional design, K-12 related, law schools, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, liberal arts, lifelong learning, love of learning, microlearning, more voice more choice more control, online learning, open courseware and systems, participation, professional development, project-based learning, publishing, real-world assignments, social learning / networks, society, student-related, technologies for your home, the downsides of how people use tech, training / L&D, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, vision/possibilities, youth, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
Christin Bohnke raises a great and timely question out at edsurge.com in her article entitled:
Do We Really Want Academic Permanent Records to Live Forever on Blockchain?

Christin does a wonderful job of addressing the possibilities — but also the challenges — of using blockchain for educational/learning-related applications. She makes a great point that the time to look at this carefully is now:

Yet as much as unchangeable education records offer new chances, they also create new challenges. Setting personal and academic information in stone may actually counter the mission of education to help people evolve over time. The time to assess the benefits and drawbacks of blockchain technology is right now, before adoption in schools and universities is widespread.

As Christin mentions, blockchain technology can be used to store more than formal certification data. It could also store such informal certification data such as “research experience, individual projects and skills, mentoring or online learning.”

The keeping of extensive records via blockchain certainly raises numerous questions. Below are a few that come to my mind:

Will this type of record-keeping help or hurt in terms of career development and moving to a different job?
Will — or should — CMS/LMS vendors enable this type of feature/service in their products?
Should credentials from the following sources be considered relevant?
- Microlearning-based streams of content
- Data from open courseware/courses
- Learning that we do via our Personal Learning Networks (PLNs) and social networks
- Learning that we get from alternatives such as bootcamps, coding schools, etc.
Will the keeping of records impact the enjoyment of learning — or vice versa? Or will it depend upon the person?
Will there be more choice, more control — or less so?
To what (granular) level of competency-based education should we go? Or from project-based learning?
Could instructional designers access learners’ profiles to provide more personalized learning experiences?
…and I’m certain there are more questions than these.

All that said…

To me, the answers to these questions — and likely other questions as well — lie in:

Giving a person a chance to learn, practice, and then demonstrate the required skills (regardless of the data the potential employer has access to)
.
Giving each user the right to own their own data — and to release it as they see fit. Each person should have the capability of managing their own information/data without having to have the skills of a software engineer or a database administrator. When something is written to a blockchain, there would be a field for who owns — and can administer — the data.

In the case of finding a good fit/job, a person could use a standardized interface to generate a URL that is sent out to a potential employer. That URL would be good for X days. The URL gives the potential employer the right to access whatever data has been made available to them. It could be full access, in which case the employer is able to run their own queries/searches on the data. Or the learner could restrict the potential employer’s reach to a more limited subset of data.

Visually, speaking:

I still have a lot more thinking to do about this, but that’s where I’m at as of today. Have a good one all!

Google Invites Classroom Users to Join Beta for ‘Practice Sets,’ with Auto-Grading, Instant Student Feedback, and More [Kuykendall]

On 03/18/2022, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, CMS/LMS, digital learning, education technology, emerging technologies, Google, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, mathematics, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, teachers, by Daniel Christian

Google Invites Classroom Users to Join Beta for ‘Practice Sets,’ with Auto-Grading, Instant Student Feedback, and More — from thejournal.com by Kristal Kuykendall

Excerpt:

“With Practice Sets, educators can easily transform their own teaching content into interactive assignments and use the auto-grading tool to cut down on manual grading time,” Kiecza said in his blog post. “Practice Sets also helps teachers figure out which concepts need more instruction time and who could use extra support, giving them quick performance insights to shape future lesson plans.

In an accompanying blog post explaining the Practice Sets features, Google for Education Senior Director Shantanu Sinha said the adaptive learning technology at the root of Practice Sets uses more advanced artificial intelligence than anything seen before in ed tech.

Accelerated Digital Skills and the ‘Bootcamp Boom’. [holoniq.com]

On 03/01/2022, in Africa, Alternatives, Asia, Australia, business, Canada, career development, changing business models, CMS/LMS, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, computer science, content development, aggregation, repositories, cost of getting a degree, credentialing, education technology, Europe, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, global / globalization, higher education, India, innovation, languages and translation, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, legislatures / government / legal, lifelong learning, marketplaces, new business models, organizational change, platforms, programming, reinvent, skills, staying relevant, STEAM-related, technology (general), universities, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

Accelerated Digital Skills and the ‘Bootcamp Boom’. — from holoniq.com
The market for accelerated digital skills is stepping up to a whole new level. Bootcamps, among others, are evolving rapidly to meet the opportunity.

Excerpt:

Tech Bootcamps re-skilled and up-skilled over 100,000 professionals globally in 2021, up from less than 20,000 in 2015. We expect this number to reach over 380,000 by 2025 representing over $3B of expenditure with significant upside as tech up-skilling models and modes overlap and converge. Governments, employers, universities and colleges everywhere are embracing rapid, high ROI training to build capacity in software, marketing, cyber and tech sales to drive their economies and growth.

Also from holoniq.com, see:

Global EdTech 1000. 2021 Stats and 2022 Applications Open
Benchmarking the 2021 Global EdTech 1000 as we open applications for 2022

Also relevant/see:

What’s the most effective way to find qualified tech candidates in unlikely places? — from

From DSC:
How can we better get the word out to our learners regarding how they can maximize their Return On Investment (ROI) from their studying time and efforts?

Two ideas come to mind here:

Place learning-related tips directly into our banners within our CMS’s and LMS’s
and/or
Link our banners to some other web pages/resources that provide such best practices and tips for our learners

Along these lines, we should have 11″x17″ (or larger) posters like this plastered in every hallway of every learning space out there:

Some would also add:

Active learning
Flipping the classroom
Providing individualized feedback
Metacognition (which was referenced in the first graphic above in regards to identifying gaps in one’s knowledge)

Talk about engagement! Here are some fun ideas to engage your audience, class, and/or group!!! [Christian]

On 01/18/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Adobe, adult learning, attention, Canvas - and other Instructure-related items, CMS/LMS, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, creativity, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital video, education technology, educational games / serious games, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, entrepreneurship, experimentation, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, interactivity, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, love of learning, Microsoft, multimedia, online learning, online media, participation, platforms, remote teaching and learning, smart/connected TV, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, tools, training / L&D, user experience (UX), user interface design, using teams, vendors, videoconferencing, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, webinars, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
These ideas are specially meant for you entrepreneurs and vendors out there! Including such vendors and products such as Zoom, Cisco Webex, Microsoft Teams, Adobe Connect, and others!

This idea could also be profitable and fun for CMS/LMS vendors and products such as Instructure/Canvas, Blackboard Learn, D2L, Google Classroom and others!

How might we take engagement within an online-based learning environment to an entirely different level? Well, check out these ideas!

What if learning could feature more personality? Be more fun? Have shades of game shows even!? Yet at the same time, if you are a learner who ventures into the ideas that I’m about to suggest, you had better be ready to back up and explain your perspective/position!

Here’s what I’m getting at. You know when you are messaging you can insert some fun motion graphics into your message?

Well, what about if we could select from a bank of very short video clips during a live/synchronous discussion — or during an asynchronous-based discussion board posting — that contained a famous movie clip/message? Then, if you choose to do that, you are then required to explain your perspective/position.

Video	What the video could mean
“Beam me up Scotty! There’s no intelligent life down here.”	This is ridiculous. No one’s making any sense here.
“You meddling kids.” From various bad guys on Scooby-Doo.	You’re messing with me. I don’t agree with your perspective, and here’s why.
“That does not compute.” Spock from Star Trek.	I don’t agree with your answer. That doesn’t make any sense and here’s why.
“You can’t handle the truth.” Jack Nicholson in “A Few Good Men.”	Are you sure you want to know the truth about this topic? Can you handle such a truth? This is about to get real in here.
“Do. Or do not. There is no try.” Yoda. Star Wars	Take action on something; do something.
“I’ll be back.” Arnold Schwarzenegger in various films.	I’m stepping away from my desk…but I’ll be back soon. or You may have one this round, but I’ll be back for another round.

Learners within a learning community could use entertainment and have some fun while also having to backup their position/perspective! Talk about engagement! Shooooot.

And/or…learners could be like DJ’s at radio stations — and, on the fly, select from a bank of songs, audio-based noises and sounds!

The danger here is that humor can sometimes backfire and/or offend someone. So we would need to watch the content that’s available to choose from within the repositories of media. We would want to do some serious beta testing here to make sure things stay on the fun, entertaining, and educational sides of things.

Such an approach could introduce opportunities for creativity and for honing one’s ability to think on one’s feet. Also, learners could work on their communication skills as well as their ability to debate or persuade, or to practice some critical thinking.

While more gameshow-like on the surface, if you use such media, you have to explain why you used that media.

Trends Shaping Education in 2022 — from gettingsmart.com by Tom Vander Ark

Key Points:

It’s hard to see trends in a crisis.
Around the edges and behind the scenes three important shifts accelerated: new learning goals, team tools and staffing, and active learning.

Methods and tools to develop future-ready skills — from blog.neolms.com by Rachelle Dene Poth

Excerpt:

Because of the changes that we experienced in the past year, I believe that it is important to have various options, whether teaching in-person, hybrid, or virtually. Choosing methods like Genius hour or project-based learning, activities such as scavenger hunts or learning stations, or selecting digital tools that promote more interaction with and between students will help foster the development of essential future-ready and SEL skills.

There are many methods and tools to explore, but it’s important to focus on the why behind the choices we make for our students. The use of digital tools promotes collaboration, communication, creativity and many more essential skills while also promoting the power of choice for students to share what they have learned.

More choice. More control.

Also see:

What is Breakout EDU and How Can It Be Used for Teaching? Tips and Tricks — from techlearning.com by Luke Edwards
Breakout EDU is a puzzle game based in the real world and digitally that’s great for team-based learning

Escape rooms have become very popular as a place teams can go to work out how to get free from the room in which they are “trapped.” It’s like a real-world version of a computer game that makes you work together to solve puzzles to escape from somewhere.

Breakout EDU helps to bring that experience to educators so as to better engage students and help them learn while having fun.

3 major trends affecting ed tech companies [Schwartz]

On 01/10/2022, in adult learning, Alternatives, career development, CMS/LMS, corporate universities / corporate training, education technology, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, reinvent, skills, surviving, tools, trends, United States, universities, workplace, by Daniel Christian

3 major trends affecting ed tech companies — from highereddive.com by Natalie Schwartz
We reviewed what executives said during their latest earnings calls to better understand patterns in the growing sector.

“It’s going to be a series of short, discrete skill-building offerings knitted together in a curated or customized manner,” Craig said. “It’s going to be done within enterprises in five years’ time, and that’s going to further reduce the influence of colleges and universities.”

Learning Ecosystems

A Turning Point for Prison Education [Swaak]

3 major trends affecting ed tech companies [Schwartz]

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